Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — An industry group representing America’s biggest meatpackers on Thursday pushed the U.S. Department of Agriculture to appeal a federal court decision that canceled an agency rule that allows pork plants to slaughter pigs more quickly. The decision issued Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Minnesota could raise costs for meatpackers like […] Read more
Tag Archives packers
U.S. pork processors face higher costs, slower speeds after court ruling
U.S. livestock: Lean hogs trim as packers work through holiday backlogs
CME cattle futures pressured lower
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. lean hog futures fell on Wednesday as packers work through backlogs caused by holiday shutdowns, analysts said. Daily hog slaughter regained from holiday pace, with 495,000 head processed compared to 472,000 head the week prior, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data, but was still short of prior year pace. […] Read more
U.S. pork packer Smithfield offers ultra-cold vaccine storage
COVID-19 vaccines need storage at -20 C, -70 C
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Smithfield Foods, the world’s biggest pork processor, said on Thursday it had offered to help U.S. health officials distribute COVID-19 vaccines and store them in ultra-cold freezers that are in high demand to support a public vaccination campaign. U.S. states, cities and hospitals are scrambling to buy freezers that can safely […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Live cattle pull back on demand uncertainty
CME lean hogs strengthen
Reading Time: < 1 minute Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures closed lower on Tuesday for a second consecutive session after key contracts reached more-than-four-month highs last week as processors continued to cut into a surplus of market-ready cattle, traders said. Concerns about a piecemeal economic reopening as coronavirus cases flare up across the United States have traders […] Read more
U.S. meatpackers try air cleaning tech after COVID-19 outbreaks
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Two of the world’s largest meatpackers said on Friday they have installed ultraviolet air cleaning equipment in some U.S. plants, as pressure mounts on food companies to protect workers amid growing concerns about airborne transmission of the coronavirus. JBS USA, owned by Brazil’s JBS SA and one of four major U.S. […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder cattle market searching for direction
Feedlots expecting barley prices to drop
Reading Time: 2 minutes Western Canadian feeder cattle prices continue to trade in a sideways pattern. Compared to last week, prices were quoted $2-$3 on either side of unchanged. Most auction barns were on holidays last week and arenas that did hold sales experienced limited volumes. Therefore, the market was hard to define. U.S. feeder cattle markets were steady […] Read more
U.S. meatpacking workers often absent after plants ordered to reopen
"There's still so many risks"
Reading Time: 4 minutes Chicago/Washington | Reuters — Smithfield Foods is missing about a third of its employees at a South Dakota pork plant because they are quarantined or afraid to return to work after a severe coronavirus outbreak, according to the workers’ union. Tyson Foods was forced to briefly close its Storm Lake, Iowa plant — a month […] Read more
Trump asks U.S. Justice Department to look into meat price disparities
Reading Time: 2 minutes Washington | Reuters — U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he had urged the Justice Department to look into allegations that the meatpacking industry broke antitrust law because the price that slaughterhouses pay farmers for animals had dropped even as meat prices rose. “I’ve asked the Justice Department to look into it. … I’ve […] Read more
U.S. senators scrutinize meat packers’ profits during pandemic
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. senators are calling for investigations of record profit margins for beef processors such as Tyson Foods and Cargill, after ranchers complained surging meat prices due to coronavirus hoarding did not translate into higher cattle prices. Futures prices for cattle have tumbled during the outbreak, worrying farmers as the U.S. economy […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cattle limit up on beef demand, strong packer margins
Cash hog prices up, pork cutout down
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures settled up their expanded daily limit on Tuesday as traders continued to react to soaring profit margins for beef packers that should lift prices in the cash cattle market this week. Retail demand for meat has surged as fears of the COVID-19 coronavirus prompt consumers to stock […] Read more
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